Ben Gordon scored 23 points, and the Bulls moved a step closer to securing home-court advantage in the first round of the playoffs by handing the New York Knicks their most lopsided loss of the season, 98-69 on Tuesday night.
Second in the Eastern Conference, the Bulls (47-32) lead fifth-place Cleveland by a half-game and Atlantic Division winner Toronto by 1Q. The Bulls own the tiebreaker over both teams.
The Bulls still have an outside shot at the No. 1 seed, but one more loss by the Bulls or a win by Detroit would clinch it for the Pistons.
Gordon was 8-for-14 from the field, and Luol Deng scored 15 points.
Nate Robinson scored 24 points for New York (32-46), which lost for the sixth time in seven games. Former Bull Eddy Curry committed two offensive fouls in the opening 1:44 and finished with just four points and seven rebounds.
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BULLS HITS
With one more Knicks loss or Orlando Magic victory, the Knicks officially will be eliminated from the playoff race and the Bulls will be assured of another lottery pick from the Oct. 4, 2005, Eddy Curry trade.
